John Daly’s Prostroke Golf Review

One of the under the radar games we saw at E3 this year was John Daly’s Prostroke Golf. OG Games showed us their upcoming Move-based golf title, and now it’s been released to the masses. So, is Daly’s first video game a hole-in-one, or just a drive into the rough?

The biggest selling point of Prostroke Golf is that it’s really the first golf game to have been designed from the ground up for the PlayStation Move. This focus really shines through in the gameplay, as the peripheral works much better than it does with Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11′s patched-in Move support. You can also play the game with a DualShock controller, but this is really a title that was intended for the Move.

The game picks up many nuances from the Move controller to simulate an actual golf swing. For example, rotating your wrists to close the clubface will result in a right-to-left ball flight. It also makes putting far easier (and more realistic) than in EA’s offering, where a short putt is much like a bullfight. Due to these changes, it’s a far more accurate simulation of a real golf swing than anything we’ve seen in a game to this point.

There are a few hiccups in the control mechanisms. Aiming a shit is kind of a crap shoot, as you have to pull the T trigger on the Move controller and then nudge the cursor around. This mechanic just didn’t feel tight, and resulted in some frustrating alignment issues.

Prostoke Golf’s graphics are also disappointing. The courses are bland, with substandard textures. Characters are also fairly straightforward, with very little to distinguish one from the other outside of clothing selections. In the end, graphics are not the make or break point for a golf game, although these could be a lot better.

The biggest letdown for me was in the game modes. You have only three options: Quick Game, Career Mode, and Online. Quick Game is obvious, but Career Mode is a bit misleading. In most golf (and other sports games), you find yourself creating a character and playing through a season. Not so in this case.

In Prostroke’s career mode, you’ll find yourself facing off against John Daly himself in a series of challenges on the course you’re trying to compete on. First, you’ll have to hit tee shots for total distance, then approach shots for closest to the hole, and then putting for nearest the hole as well. If you’re lucky enough to work your way through these, you then have to take on Daly in a little match. Beat him, and you’ll unlock the tournament for that course.

Sounds a bit onerous, doesn’t it? Well, here’s the really bad news. You’ll have to go through this again for every single course. Online play isn’t bad, but in our experience finding a game took quite a bit of time.

All in all, John Daly’s Prostroke Golf is an adequate first effort whose best feature is the excellent integration of the Move controller. Unfortunately, it doesn’t offer the robust experience of its much more mature competitor, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11. It’s lacking a few features and a little polish that keep it out of that class. Once the price drops, it could be a great pickup for Move owners to get even more out of their peripherals.

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